Murder on Deck
by AdmHawthorne
Summary: Someone's on a killing spree aboard Voyager, and Janeway seems to the reason behind the motives. Can the crew figure out who is behind the deeds before it's too late?
1. Chapter 1

**I completely forgot I wrote this. Looks like I did do a murder mystery. I'm posting it here because it's a bit of fun. However, my Rizziles stuff will be 100% better than this. Promise!**

**Not mine... not the characters, the franchise, or the really cool bun of steel.  
**

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"Ok, ok," Kathryn's resolve was waning. It had been days since the accident had happened aboard Voyager that had caused the death of Crewman Jacobs. Grant it, he wasn't well known to her, but he was well liked among those who knew him. There didn't seem to be any plausible, logical reason why the accident had occurred, and she hated the idea that, once again, one of their own might have been responsible for the disaster. "Tuvok, I realize that all the evidence points to possible sabotage, but I just don't believe that there is anyone on this ship that is a traitor or a murder, at least not any more."

"Need I remind you, Captain, of the incident with Ensign Sudur or the incident with Seska, or the incident regarding myself?" Tuvok was trying his best to have a logical discussion with the Captain, she knew that, but it was still agitating. How could anyone here be responsible for this? Why? "It is possible that there is a traitor among our ranks."

"But, Tuvok, we've been here seven years together. Surely, by now, we've weeded out all the 'bad seeds', so to speak."

"What about those crewmembers from the Equinox?"

"Do you think one of them could have been involved?"

"It is a possibility. After all, they do have a motive."

"Yes, but how could that motive justify killing another crewman? Jacobs didn't hold any standing that would put them into a tactical advantage should they take his life. Where is there a motive for one of them to kill him? It would be more likely for them to go after one of the senior officers or even me."

"Indeed, this does bring up an interesting prospect, Captain. Perhaps it would be wise to post security with you and the other senior officers until this crime is solved."

"No, I don't think so, Commander." Tuvok raised an eyebrow of disapproval. "I realize that our safety may be at risk, but, if there is a traitor on board again, who's to say that it isn't one of our security officers? Besides, I don't want to raise undue suspicion."

"I feel it necessary to point out that, as you put it, good news travels fast. I would hypothesize that most of the crew is now aware of the situation, if not all of them."

"Yes, I've been thinking about that as well." Kathryn sighed and sat down on her ready room couch with a cup of coffee. She paused trying to gather her thoughts and glanced in the direction of the chronometer. "Look at the time. It's almost midnight." It was an observation, something to divert attention from the problem for a moment.

"Perhaps you should get some rest?"

"You sound like Chakotay. I think the two of you have been spending too much time together."

"I am only offering a logical suggestion to your fatigue, Captain, as the Commander does frequently."

"I know. I wonder how he and Seven are coming along with the scans of that conduit?"

"They reported in only an hour ago. I am sure they have either gone to their quarters for the evening or will report back in a few minutes."

"Chakotay to the Captain." Tuvok gave his all-knowing look as the hail came in.

Janeway rolled her eyes and hit her comm badge. "Go ahead, Commander."

"Captain, we still haven't come up with anything, but we've decided to call it a night."

"Understood, Commander. You two can pick up on it tomorrow."

"Right, oh and Captain, one more thing."

"Yes, Commander?"

"Perhaps you should take our lead and try to get some rest yourself?"

"Now I know you and Tuvok have been spending too much time together. He just made the same suggestion."

"What can I say? Great minds think alike. Maybe you should take this great advice then?"

"I think I will. You have my word, Commanders."

"Good, Chakotay out."

Kathryn dismissed Tuvok and then finished up some final data on this enigma of a death.

As she entered her quarters, she could feel the strain of the days. Slowly she changed clothes and went to bed hoping that tomorrow they could figure out what had happened so they could stop trying to find the killer and, instead, begin to try to find away back home.

"Sickbay to the Captain." The hail roused Kathryn out of a dreamless but heavy sleep. "Captain, please respond." She looked desperately for her comm badge and then remembered it was still on her uniform jacket half way across the room. "Captain, are you there?" Quickly, she lunged out of bed in the direction of her jacket catching it on her way to the floor.

In a heap of bedding, pink nightgown, and uniform clothing, she finally answered the Doctor. "Yes, Doctor, go ahead."

"Ah, there for a moment I thought you might have been attack as well; good to know you weren't."

"Doctor?" Kathryn was trying to get out of the mess she'd caused clamoring for her comm badge, but every time she tried to get up, something would just trip her and send her back down to the floor.

"Commander Chakotay was attacked last night."

"Is he alright, Doctor?"

"I think you should come down here before I answer that question, Captain."

Quickly, Captain Janeway dressed and rushed toward sickbay. Was this the same 'person' who'd attacked the Crewman? What was happening on her ship? She hated it when something was going on, and she didn't know what it was. Not even Lt. Paris could hide something from her, and he was very good at thinking he could. What was happening?

Janeway rushed in behind the whoosh of the sickbay doors.

"Report."

"The Commander is in a coma, Captain."

"I see."

"Ensign Kim found him this morning in front of his quarters and had him transported here."

"Why is he in a coma Doctor? How did he get this way?"

"Well, it seems as though someone was able to access the medical data base and replicate a drug that has put the Commander in a coma."

"Did you check the replicator and sensor logs to see who it was?"

"Yes, and there is no evidence of anyone using the replicators, no evidence of anyone accessing the medical database, and no records of anyone being around the Commander when he was attacked."

"Then how do you know he was attacked and drugged?"

"Well, it's simple really." As the Doctor walked toward the Commander, Janeway noticed that Tuvok was in the room.

"Tuvok, I'm sorry, I didn't see you there."

"Nor did I make my presence known."

Kathryn contemplated this for a moment. "And why didn't you, Commander?"

"I, too, was deep in thought when you arrived. I simply was not aware of your presence. My apologies, Captain."

"Don't worry about it, Tuvok. I think we're all a little distracted as of late."

"If you'll look at the Commander's upper arm, Captain," the Doctor's annoyance did not go unnoticed, "you'll see a mark." Kathryn could see a distinctive red mark, a thin, short red line, on Chakotay's upper arm. "This was made with a needle."

"A needle?"

"Yes, a device used in the 20th century to give injections of certain kinds of medication much like a hypospray does today."

"How can you be sure, Doctor?"

"Because," he turned and retrieved something from his medical tray, "I retrieved this from his arm." It was a small thin piece of metal. "If you'll look, it's hollow. That's how the medication was injected, through this hollow metal tube via a piercing made by the same in a portion of the patient's body." He showed a diagram of it on one of the view screens in sickbay. "Do you see how the angle of the wound on the Commander's arm in down and toward the back of his arm?"

She examined the mark closer to see exactly what the doctor was trying to explain. "Yes."

"Well, that is a clear indication that some one besides the Commander injected him. The downward part indicates that the other person was coming down with the needle like this," he demonstrated, "and the position, at the back of his arm, and angle indicate that he was struggling when his attacker finally drugged him, like this," he demonstrated on Tuvok who went along with the demonstration much like a cat does to a bath, "Also, there are bruises and scratches that further indicate that some sort of skirmish occurred."

"A sound deduction, Doctor," that was high praise from a Vulcan. Kathryn almost laughed at the though, but the fact that her first officer was comatose prevented such a thing. "However, why did you not examine the needle end for DNA as well?"

"Ah, but I did, Commander. I thought of that when I was examining the needle to determine what kind of drug was used."

"Just exactly what kind of drug was used, Doctor?" Janeway was becoming irritated. She was growing tired of having to drag all the important information out of the EMH.

"It was a drug called Codeine mixed with a poison known as arsenic. The combination of the two, although arsenic alone is deadly in high doses as well as Codeine, mixed with the Commander's body chemistry caused him to go into a coma. It was really a rather ingenious way to do it if you think about it, using one's own body against one's self. Who would have thought?"

"Is there any way to reverse the effects? Perhaps the Commander could tell us who his assailant was if you are able to revive him." Captain Janeway's mind was right behind her chief security officer's.

"Right now, I'm working on it, but I still haven't come up with anything. Because the attacker used the Commander's chemistry against himself, it's hard to find something that won't further injure him. It might take a while. Meanwhile, I'll have to put him in stasis to prevent brain damage." He looked to Janeway for approval. "I should also point out, since I was slightly side tracked, that I didn't find any DNA on the needle end that didn't belong to Commander Chakotay."

"Do what you must, Doctor, but keep me posted. I want you to run another scan for DNA on the Commander. If there is anyone's DNA on him, I want to know. If there was a struggle, then they had to have had physical contact."

"Indeed. Doctor, I've one more question before we allow you to continue your work."

"Yes, Commander?"

"Why do you suppose the attacker used an antiquated piece of technology to inject Commander Chakotay?"

"I don't know. Maybe they just enjoy the pain it inflicts. It is, after all, much more painful to be injected with a needle than it is a hypospray. Or," the Doctor paused to think about the question more clearly. "It could be that the metal in the needle's end was needed as a sort of catalyst to get the process started."

"You mean that, in order to put him in a coma, these two chemicals needed metal? That's unusual, isn't it, Doctor?" Janeway didn't like where this was going.

"No, not really. Many medications need others to make them effective; that's why, often, we mix them and use them in combinations."

"Yes, I'm well aware of that. What I meant was it was unusual to use metal."

"Well yes, but you forgot to put the Commander's unique chemistry into effect. If this assailant had injected anyone else with the composition as they did with him, the poor soul would have died. It's my guess that whatever it is about the Commander's metabolism that put him in the coma with the mix of meds needed the boost of iron or whatever this needle is made out of."

"Would you mind analyzing that and telling us what it's made out of and if, in fact, the composition of the metal used in the needle was needed to institute the Commander's present state?"

"I'd be happy to, Commander."

"Good. Tuvok and I are going to head back to the bridge and try to work with the rest of the senior staff. We've got to get the bottom of this. Keep me posted doctor."

The Doctor nodded as the two left sickbay headed toward the bridge. This whole thing was getting a little hairy for Kathryn. The way things were working out, she might be next.

As the turbolift doors slid closed, Tuvok finally spoke to Janeway. "Are you certain that you do not require a security detail?"

Sometimes she thought the Vulcan could read her thoughts. "Yes, we'll hold off on it just a little while longer. With any luck," she began as they stepped out of the lift onto the bridge, "I won't need it."

The rest of the senior staff was waiting for the Captain and Commander in the conference room. Seven had not went ahead with the investigation since finding out about Chakotay. She had thought it best to wait for the Captain's approval. Tom and B'Elanna were both edgy. Miral had been up all night, and the fact that there was a killer on the loose wasn't helping their sleeping habits any. Ensign Kim, too, was exhausted but mentally, not physically. He was the one who had found Chakotay passed out in front of his quarters this morning. It had taken a toll on him.

Janeway sat down in her normal spot keenly aware of the empty seat to her right hand. "We have a major problem here and I need some major answers. Let's start with what we know about Crewman Jacobs and Commander Chakotay. From now on, we are to assume that these, the murder and the attack, were intentional and connected. It may be one person or a group. Either way, we've got to find them and stop them before anymore people are harmed on this ship."

It took almost two hours before the officers came up with a connection between the Crewman and the Commander, and it was young Ensign Kim who finally spotted it.

"Wait a minute, I think I've got something, Captain, but it's small."

"Whatever it is, it may be of some help. Let's hear it, Ensign."

"Well, both the Commander and the Ensign were . . . wait, never mind. That's just . . ." he shook his head, "it was a bad idea."

Tuvok spoke his words of encouragement. "Ensign, if there is any connection at all, you must point it out no matter how minute. It is a well known fact that often serial killers pick up on one distinct detail, sometimes as insignificant as the color one wears most often, to determine who they attack."

"Well, that's just it, Tuvok," Harry was trying to get himself out of the mess he'd just created. "the Commander isn't dead, he's just in a coma. Maybe we're off base thinking that the two incidents are related."

"No, I don't think so, Harry." The Captain was growing impatient. "I believe they are linked. I can feel it, and, until I'm proven otherwise, that is exactly how we are going to handle these cases."

"Indeed, it is more likely that we are dealing with one individual than a group. Groups are much more easily identified because there are more individuals to cause a mistake so that they can be so identified. As it stands, we have been unable to find the source of conflict, so it stands to reason that it is one individual." Seven's logic was slightly flawed, but it served Kathryn's point.

"Ok, I'll tell you, Captain, but you have to promise me that you won't get offended or upset."

Janeway was surprised but intrigued. "Ok, I promise. Now what is it?" The others there were beginning to see what Harry had caught.

The Ensign cleared his throat and pooled all of his courage. "Well, you see Captain, it's a well known fact, or at least most of the crew has assumed that, the Commander had a thing for you and may still." He paused to gauge Janeway's reaction and gather more strength. Kathryn's face was emotionless. "Of course, it's really none of our business what you're love life is like, but . . ."

"Get on with it, Harry," Captain Janeway was not liking where this was going either.

"Right, ok, well, it's just that Crewman Jacobs didn't make it a secret that he had a crush on you as well."

"I see. The only connection you can make is that the two men supposedly had 'crushes' on me?" Janeway could feel the headache forming in the back of her head.

"You know, Captain," Tom Paris was desperately trying to help his drowning friend. "It really isn't all that unusual for members of a crew to develop crushes on their soupier officers kind of like some kids do on their teachers."

B'Elanna was trying to hold back a smirk that kept trying to rear it's ugly head. As she spoke, it was clear that this whole idea was funny to her. "If the reason people are being targeted is because they have a thing for the Captain, Harry, then half the crew is going to die before this whole thing is over with." She chuckled then; she couldn't help herself. Then she looked over at her Captain who was none too pleased with this conversation.

Her comment was almost inaudible. "I didn't realize I'd had that kind of affect on my crew." She took a moment to refocus herself. "But, that still isn't a sound reason. Everyone knows that Chakotay and Seven are currently seeing each other." Seven blushed apparently not realizing that she and the Commander were an object of gossip. "And, didn't the Crewman have some one as well?"

"I did see him with a female Ensign on many occasions. They appeared to be 'dating' each other." Seven still had a slight blush.

"So, if the assailant was attacking people because they had a," Kathryn rolled her eyes, "crush on me, why go after people who pose no threat of actually dating me?" She rolled her eyes again, "Not that anyone would."

"You are assuming, of course, Captain that this person is killing and/or injuring due to being enraged at the thought of anyone else getting to you first," Tuvok was beginning to speculate. "What if they are doing so because they aren't with you?"

"What do you mean, Tuvok?"

"What if they are doing so because they didn't have enough 'love' or 'admiration' to wait for you? They, instead, pursued others as opposed to waiting for you."

"They couldn't wait for me, so they weren't good enough for me?"

"Precisely."

"Now, there's an interesting thought. As a matter of fact, this whole idea is an interesting thought, but I still don't see it as the best one we can come up with. I want all of you to think of possible reasons and connections for these attacks. You can report back tomorrow at the next officers meeting. You're dismissed."

Her senior officers filed out of the conference room with looks of concern, concentration, fear, and just a hint of bemusement on their faces. Of all the hypotheses out there, why did that have to be one, and why did it have to be one with some good ground? This was going to be a long episode in the lives' of the Voyager crew; Janeway could already see it coming.


	2. Chapter 2

She sighed, picked up her PADD containing the minutes of the meeting, and headed out the door toward the Mess Hall. She needed a break.

"I'm off to the Mess Hall. Tuvok, you have the bridge." Tuvok nodded as the turbolift doors slid closed.

As she entered the Mess Hall, she noticed that it was completely empty. It was only 1500 hours. Normally, there are one or two people sitting around trying to hide from her Chief Engineer or herself, but there wasn't a soul around. It was all for the best, though. She really needed some 'alone time' to gather her thoughts.

"Coffee, black." The computer chimed an acknowledgment as the signature chrome coffee cup appeared. Janeway picked it up and headed off to a corner of the room next to the windows.

She was staring out the window, watching the stars trying to figure out what was happening when she promptly fell asleep.

"Bridge to the Captain." Tuvok's voice rang through her head, "Captain, please respond."

Kathryn was drowsy. She couldn't believe she had fallen asleep in the Mess Hall, again. It happened so often that the crew didn't even wake her up anymore, and this time was no exception. There were a couple of crew members sitting at a table eating as Tuvok hailed her. "Go ahead, Commander."

"Captain, I believe you should report to sickbay."

"Sickbay? Why?"

"There has been another murder."

"Who?"

"Ensign Kim."

Janeway jumped from her resting place and ran to the sickbay doors. When she entered, she found Tom already there helping the Doctor try to revive young Ensign Kim.

"On my mark, Mr. Paris." Tom nodded. "Now!"

Harry's body shook from the surge of power that the node put there trying to bring him back.

"Again, Mr. Paris."

"Harry's life signs are coming back. We have a heartbeat!" Tom was nearly dancing.

Kathryn waited with baited breath as the Doctor and Tom stabilized Harry.

"Doctor, what happened here?"

"Ensign Kim was attacked with a Klingon dagger."

"A Klingon dagger? Where?"

"I found him on deck seven, section four."

"Why was he there, Mr. Paris?"

"Because Tuvok sent him down there to check up on a conduit malfunction. All of B'Elanna's people are busy trying to get the warp core up and running at full. After that conduit exploded killing Crewman Jacobs, it really messed up the warp drive, but you know that already. Anyway, Harry said he'd go fix it, and, when he didn't come back and wouldn't answer his hails, I offered to go after him. That's where I found him with the dagger sticking in his chest."

"Is there any indication of anything Doctor? DNA, fingerprints, sensor logs?"

"Nothing so far, but I haven't looked at much. After all, I've been trying to bring Mr. Kim back from the land beyond."

Tuvok walked into sickbay. "My apologies for my tardiness, but I've been looking at sensor logs to try and identify Mr. Kim's assailant. I am forced to relate that I have found nothing. It is just as it was with Commander Chakotay."

Janeway glanced at her first officer who was in stasis a few beds away. "Can you revive Harry, Doctor?"

"No, I can't. Whoever attacked him injected him with a drug that I am unfamiliar with. He, too, is in a coma."

"That's a little unusual, don't you think, Tuvok? Why would some one want to put their victim in a coma and then stab them?"

"Perhaps that is not their intention."

"Maybe. Doctor, I want you to do the same scans as you did with the Commander. Tuvok, I want you to look over the sensor logs for both Harry and Chakotay again. Look for anything that might link the two. Tom, go back to the bridge. We need you there, but be careful. There's no telling who's next. I want a meeting in two hours. Meanwhile, I'm going to look into more motives for these attempted murders. Let's do it."

Janeway didn't like the empty seats that kept appearing at her staff meetings. It was distracting, but a good reminder why they needed to solve this mystery.

"Well, we all know," B'Elanna was tired and it showed, "that Harry was a suspect for Chakotay. I mean, he was the one that found him, he was in front of his quarters, and there were no other witnesses, so maybe the killer was just trying to make sure Harry wasn't blamed for something he didn't do."

"Well, let's hope that's not the case." Tom's voice was increasing in pitch as his fear level went up. "After all, I was the one who found Harry. Does that mean the killer is after me next?"

"Let's not start a massive panic here." Janeway was trying to maintain her calm. "Tuvok and I have gone over the sensor records time and again, and we still haven't found anything. The same can be said of the Doctor. So, that means we still need a motive. What links these three people, and why did this person put Harry in a coma before stabbing him with a Klingon dagger?"

"I think the question is how did they get it. I took a look at it before the meeting, and it belongs to me. I even went to our quarters to make sure. Mine is missing. I've been in Engineering all day. I've got alibis for every hour for the past nine days because I've either been working or sleeping."

"No one is suggesting you are at fault here, B'Elanna," although it had crossed the Captain's mind, "I think it may be possible that this person has access to access codes and that's how they can cover their tracks so well."

"They simply delete the information so well that we cannot retrieve it, but," Seven's mind was at work, "there are always residual signs left from a deletion. If, indeed, that is what the killer is doing, we should be able to track down this residual signatures of the data."

"It does seem to reason that it is possible, Captain."

"Alright, then I want you and Seven to start working on that, Tuvok. Meanwhile, are there any suggestions on a motive for these attacks?"

"Well," Tom started, "We, that is B'Elanna and I, had thought it might be tattoos because both Chakotay and Crewman Jacobs had them, but Harry doesn't have any that we know of, so that can't be it."

Seven brought her idea, "Indeed, I came upon the same problem. I had thought that it might be the uniforms because both the Commander and Crewman wear command red uniforms, but Ensign Kim does not, so my hypothesis was incorrect."

"Captain," the way Tuvok addressed her indicated to Kathryn that this was something she did not want to hear. "There is one possibility that you are ignoring."

"What is that, Commander."

"If I am not mistaken, Ensign Kim also has a 'crush' on you."  
Janeway rolled her eyes. "Is that not true, Mr. Paris?"

"Well, Harry would kill me if he knew I told you this, Captain, but, since Tuvok brought it up first," he shrugged. "Harry does have a crush on you. It's just one of those things. You know how bad his track record is – two alien species, a dead woman, two holograms, the wrong twin, a borg," Seven moved slightly at this comment," and you. It's not like he can really help himself."

"I can't believe this. Ok, I want a full list of everyone on this ship who has," she rolled her eyes again, "a crush on me. I can't believe I'm saying this. Tom, I want you to work on it. Since warp and propulsion are off line, we're dead in the water anyway, so we don't need a pilot. Alright, let's get to it. Dismissed." She really hated where this was going.


	3. Chapter 3

Janeway followed B'Elanna down to Engineering. She needed something to distract her but at the same time be productive. She decided to help Torres with the warp core. Maybe crawling around the Jeffrey's tubes would give her some much needed inspiration.

"Captain, are you sure you want to go at this alone?" It was obvious that Lt. Torres was apprehensive about letting anyone go alone anywhere, especially the Captain. "Maybe Vorik could go with you?"

"No, I'll be alright, Lt. Besides, it's crowded enough with just one person in those tubes. In this case," Janeway cocked her head to one side, "two's a crowd."

"Ok, but don't tell Tuvok I let you do this. He'd kill me."

Kathryn started crawling through the Jeffrey's tubes toward her destination. What was going on here? What did she know? She knew that the first attack was an exploding conduit that appeared to have been sabotaged. It appeared as though some one had short-circuited the wiring causing it to blow when some one, in this case Crewman Jacobs, started to replace the gel pack. However, from what Chakotay and Seven had managed to uncover before he was put out of commission, it didn't appear as though the saboteur had intended for their victim to die, just be injured enough to require the Doctor. The Doctor said that, if the Crewman had been just slightly further away, the explosion would have put him in a coma, but it wouldn't have resulted in death. So, strike one up for a coma. Next was Chakotay. It appeared as though he was headed toward his quarters, but only made it as far as Harry Kim's. He was attacked and put in a coma, but the story the Doctor was giving about the needle and the drugs used wasn't holding water in Kathryn's opinion. Yes, the evidence for the needle was there, and, yes, he was injected with those substances, but the amount wasn't enough to do the kind of damage that the Commander had. There was an element missing there, but what? After Chakotay was Harry. He, too, was fixing a conduit, but he was stabbed with a Klingon dagger, B'Elanna's to be exact. Janeway doubted that Torres had anything to do with this incident because she had solid alibis since shortly before Jacob's death. According to the Doctor, Harry was put into a coma before he was stabbed as though it was important to the attacker to make sure that he wasn't in any pain – to protect him, and the dagger wasn't placed anywhere that would kill him unless he bled to death, which wasn't possible because deck 7, section 4 was a busy intersection most of the time, and what was this unknown chemical used to put Harry in that coma?

Protection . . . that may have something to do with all of this. Chakotay was headed back to his quarters, but who was waiting for him there? More than likely it was Seven. Harry was put in a coma before he was stabbed to protect him from the pain of the dagger's blade. Jacobs, there was the one that had everyone stumped. Was there protection there? What about that Ensign Seven thought he might be dating? As soon as she was done with this conduit, she was going to look into all of these missing pieces.

"Janeway to Torres."

"Go ahead, Captain."

"B'Elanna, I'm all done here. I'm going to go to sickbay and check up on the Doctor's progress."

"Understood. Be careful, Captain."

"I will. Janeway out."

On her way to sickbay, Janeway stopped in on Seven and Tuvok in Astrometrics. She was about to get some answers.

"Captain, what can I do for you? The Commander and I have yet to find anything useful."

"I'm not here for that quite yet, but I do expect to know something as soon as you find anything that is useful. I'd like to ask you some questions, Seven." Tuvok turned an ear toward his Captain to see what she was up to.

"As you wish, Captain."

"Seven, this is a person question, but I want you to answer it as truthfully as possible." Seven placed her hands behind her back as she visibly hardened herself for the question. "Were you waiting for Commander Chakotay in his quarters the night he was attack?"

There was a pause. "Yes."

"Did you contact him, or did he contact you before he headed toward his quarters?"

"Yes. He was in Astrometrics. I had left early. He contacted me just before he left to inform me that he was on his way."

"So, anyone with in earshot would have know where he was going."

"I suppose, yes."

"You said you saw Crewman Jacobs with a female Ensign. Do you remember who she was?"

There was another pause. "Yes, it was Crewman Taylor."

"Captain," Tuvok interrupted, "Do you have an idea as to who the murder is?"

"No, not yet, Tuvok, but I may be on to something. I want to you to continue working on the residual signatures left by that deleted information."

"Captain," Seven was puzzled, "we have yet to inform you that there was indeed deleted information."

"Was there?"

"Yes."

"Then continue. I'll contact you, Tuvok, if I find anything out." He nodded.

Janeway headed out of Astrometrics with a new determination. She was going to find this person or die trying. Well, maybe not die. Hopefully not die, but she was going to find them. After all, the crew didn't call her Commando Janeway for nothing.

"Computer, where is the location of Ensign Taylor?"

"Ensign Taylor is in her quarters."

"Where are Ensign Taylor's quarters?"

"Ensign Taylor's quarters are located on deck 7, section 8."

There was another odd coincidence. Harry was found on deck 7, section 4. There was definitely something going on here.


	4. Chapter 4

Janeway tried to shake a sinking feeling about this whole situation as she entered sickbay.

"Doctor, have you finished your scans yet?"

"Not yet, but I'm just about done." The Doctor punched some figures into a console on his desk. "Ah, there we are."

"What have you come up with?"

"Well, remember that unknown chemical I found in Ensign Kim's body?" Janeway nodded, "I have analyzed it, and this is what I found." He turned the console around so the Captain could see the results.

Janeway almost lost her balanced as she realized what the chemical was floating around Harry's bloodstream, but managed to maintain her composure. "Do you have any idea what the substance is, Doctor?" She wondered how long she could play dumb about this information. It had only taken a day for the entire crew to find out about the Omega Directive. Kathryn could see the slippery slope forming.

"No, not yet, but I'm working on it."

"Good." She hesitated. "Doctor, I have a question for you."

"Alright."

"This 'substance', did you check Commander Chakotay to see if he has any traces of it in his bloodstream as well?"

"No, I hadn't thought of that, but I will now." Swiftly, he picked up a medical tricorder and began scanning the comatose Commander. "He does, indeed, have the same chemical present in his bloodstream. Normally, my scans wouldn't have even picked it up…"

"Do you think that the other two chemicals you found were a rouse to lead you away from finding this substance? Is this really what's causing the Commander's coma?"

"Hmmm, it is possible. After all, the other two substances were in such a small amount that normally they would only make the Commander ill, not put him in a coma."

"I want you to look into that. I also want you to check Crewman Jacob's file and see, from your last scans of his body, if there are traces of this unknown substance in his bloodstream as well."

"Right, I'll contact you as soon as I find something."

Janeway nodded as she headed out the sickbay doors and toward Ensign Taylor's quarters.

"Computer, is Ensign Taylor still in her quarters?"

"Affirmative."

Janeway rang the Ensign's door and waited. It was few a seconds before she was given the ok to enter. As she entered, Janeway noted that the room was plainly decorated, almost harsh, and the young woman in front of her, although surprised, was still unusually cold. Kathryn found herself remembering why she wasn't fond of Ensign Taylor.

"Captain Janeway. What a pleasant surprise. What can I do for you?"

Janeway smiled, but quickly recounted the move. "Well, Ensign, I'm here to ask you some questions if you don't mind."

"Not at all, Captain. Please, sit down. Would you like something?"

"Thank you, no." She sat down on a stiff chair across from the couch where Taylor was seated. "Ensign, I'm going to ask you some rather personal questions, but . . . "

"You think that it may help you find out who killed John."

"Well, yes. We believe that whoever is responsible for killing Crewman Jacobs is also responsible for injuring the Commander and Ensign Kim. We are trying to look for any connection between the two, which is why I need to ask you these questions."

"Go ahead."

"Were you and Crewman Jacobs romantically involved?"

"Yes." There was no elaboration, and Kathryn knew it was because Taylor wanted to make this as difficult and as distasteful a matter as possible.

"Were there any members of the crew who might have objected to the two of you seeing each other?"

"No, not that I know of. Most people wanted to see him with somebody if for no other reason than to get him to stop talking about you." The venom in her voice momentarily stunned Janeway. She had forgotten that the Crewman had a 'crush' on her. "I don't know why you're acting so surprised, Captain. John was as obsessed about you as Chakotay could have ever dreamed of being, or Harry Kim for that matter."

"I see."

"Do you have any more questions for me, Captain?" Janeway definitely did not care for this woman. No wonder she avoided her at parties.

"No."

Taylor rose, and Janeway followed. "Well, then, if you'll excuse me, Captain, I have to get some rest. I'm on Delta shift this week."

Janeway left the Ensign's quarters with a sense of uneasiness. This woman didn't like her, that was obvious, but that didn't qualify her as a murderer by any means. It didn't even give her a motive for the types of attacks that were being committed. If Ensign Taylor was going to attack and destroy any person on this ship, it would have been Kathryn Janeway herself, not some second hand crewmember.

"The Doctor to Captain Janeway."

"Yes, Doctor? Have you found something?"

"No, but I thought, since Commander Chakotay isn't able, that some one should remind you to sleep now and again."

"What time is it?"

"2300 hours, way past your bedtime."

"I don't recall ever telling you I had a bedtime, Doctor."

"As your physician, may I remind you that is my duty to make sure you remain healthy even if you don't care to maintain your own health. Now, you should get some rest before I pull rank."

"Ok, Doctor, I'm headed toward my quarters now. Janeway out."

Just once she wished that people on this ship would tend to some one else's business other than hers.

She changed clothes and slid under her covers. Her mind was racing with information. She had one dead crewman and two senior officers in comas with a top secret, level 10 chemical floating around their bloodstream. There were only three people aboard Voyager that had access, or even knowledge, of this chemical. One of the three was already not an option, but the other two were, and they were not likely suspects. She had a Klingon dagger, a needle, a conduit, and two recognizable chemical substances which were all used as diversions to try and hide the use of the chemical. She had a sensor log deletion so well done that Seven and Tuvok together couldn't break the encryption code, and her only likely suspect was a bitter young woman who was jealous of her because her boyfriend had a 'crush' on her. There was that connection. Each of the men had a thing for Kathryn, which she had known all along. Tomorrow, she would look at the list of names Tom had made and placed on her desk. This whole episode was getting stranger and more dangerous by the hour.

"Sickbay to the Captain."

Kathryn was really starting to hate waking up to the Doctor's voice. "Go ahead, Doctor."

"Captain, I hate to keep giving you these kind of wake-up calls, but there has been another attack."

"Who is it this time?"

"Seven of Nine."

Janeway almost fell out of her bed.


	5. Chapter 5

This new bit of information really threw a wrench in her theory, unless Seven had a thing for her too, but, then again . . . she didn't want to think about it.

"I'll be down there shortly, Doctor."

"Understood, sickbay out."

As Kathryn entered sickbay, she noticed that it was beginning to look more like a boarding house than a medical bay. Three of her finest officers were laying in comas, and she was really helpless to do anything about it.

"Report."

"Once again, our assailant with the vast knowledge of unknown chemical substances has struck again. This time they didn't even bother to cover up the fact that this chemical was used. So far, I haven't come up with anything to counteract it."

"I see, keep me informed, Doctor." She turned to leave. "Janeway to Tuvok."

"Yes, Captain."

"Tuvok, assemble what is left of the senior staff and have them waiting for me in the conference room."

"Aye, Captain."

There were now three empty seats in the conference room, and the spaces were almost enough to make Kathryn want to cry. What remained of her senior staff – Tuvok, B'Elanna, Tom, and the Doctor – were not the ideal team to figure this mystery out, but she'd been in worse situations.

"I called you here to inform you of some information that I've come across thanks to the Doctor's help." All sat attentively quiet. "The Doctor has been able to identify an unknown chemical in each of the three people who've been attacked and placed in a coma."

"Yes, it has been the underlying reason for everyone's condition. I also checked Crewman Jacob's last scans. The substance was also present in his bloodstream. However, I have been unable to find any way to counteract the drug or any evidence of what it might be."

"I can shed some light on that, Doctor." The Captain sat down to gain some stability. "The chemical is a classified, level 10 substance known only to three members of this crew, one of which isn't even aware that they know." She looked at the Doctor. "Doctor, access your medical database to classified materials alpha 1-1-9 authorization Janeway Phi 1-1-Zero."

"Captain, why didn't you tell me of this before?" The Doctor was clearly upset. "I might have been able to cure them before."

"Because, it is classified, and there are other ways of bringing them around, which I'll tell you about after this meeting. The other two people are Seven of Nine and myself."

"Seven? Why would she know?"

"For the same reason she knew about the Omega Directive, through assimilation, Lt. Paris."

"But, if the chemical is stored in the Doctor's database, then it's possible that anyone with the right access codes could get to it."

"That's right, B'Elanna. That's why it's imperative that we find out who that encryption code belongs to and crack it. Whoever is doing this is a bigger security threat than we had originally thought."

"Captain?"

"Yes, Tom?"

"Have you given any more thought to possible motives?"

"I have, but since Seven has been attacked, I'm not sure if mine now hold solid grounds for consideration. Why? Have you come up with something else?"

"Well," he hesitated, "no. It's just that, well, I think that, if you're thinking what I'm still thinking, then what you're thinking may have solid ground after all, I think."

"Lt., could you please say that statement in a rational manner?"

"Sorry, Tuvok, I just don't want to offend the Captain."

"Go ahead, Tom. I don't think my sensibilities are likely to be crushed any more than they already have been."

He sighed. "There were rumors going around the ship that Seven had a thing for you too and that the only reason she and the Commander were dating was because neither one of them could have you. It was kind of like they couldn't do any better, and both of them knew how the other was feeling, so they just got together."

Once again, Janeway could feel a headache forming in the front of her head.

"Captain?" Paris waited. "Captain? I'm just telling you what I've heard. Captain?"

"Yes, Mr. Paris, I realize that, but this information only complicates matters more." She shook her head. "Doctor, it will take several days for the Commander, Seven, and Harry to come out of the coma, but I want you to start working on it as soon as possible. Everyone else, I want working on that encryption code. Dismissed."

Janeway followed her crew to Astrometrics to look at the encryption code for herself. She'd been searching for the lost data for days, but she still hadn't actually looked at the code, which was odd. Normally, that would have been the first thing she looked at.

"This is the last place Seven and I stopped before she was attacked." Tuvok pulled up a display of the encryption code for the Captain. "Is there something wrong, Captain?"

"Yes, Tuvok, I believe there is." This couldn't be happening. What she saw on the display screen wasn't possible, but it was there all the same. "We need to go to the brig, Lt."

"Is there something there that you believe may be of some help?"

"No, because you have to place me in holding."

"Captain?" Silence filled the Astrometrics lab.

"I'll explain it all once we're there, Commander."

Jaws dropped and eyebrows raised as Captain Kathryn Janeway was escorted by her Chief of Security, three armed guards, Chief Engineer, and Pilot to the brig. By the time they arrived, the corridors were lined with unbelieving eyes.

"Janeway to the Doctor." She hailed him just before walking behind the force field.

"Go ahead."

"Please come to the brig and bring a med kit."

"Is some one injured?"

"I don't know. Just come down, Doctor."

"I'm on my way."

Janeway stepped into the cell and ordered it to be engaged.

"Captain, would you please explain your actions?" Tuvok was concerned and confused, as was the rest of the crew.

"The encryption code is mine. Use the authorization code Zero-1-1 Phi Janeway."

Tuvok did as he was instructed. "According to these records, you were present at each incident including shortly before Crewman Jacob's death."

"Keep checking, Tuvok."

"It also shows evidence that you were the one that replicated the 'unknown' substance along with one hypodermic needle, a hypospray, a small amount of arsenic, and a small amount of Codeine."

"What does it say about Lt. Torres and Paris's quarters and the dagger taken from there?"

"There is evidence here that places you in their quarters shortly before Ensign Kim was attacked."

"Search my quarters and look for that hypospray. I don't know where it is in the room, but I'm positive that it is there somewhere."

"I don't understand, Captain." The Doctor had entered the brig sometime during Tuvok's reading of 'the lost sensor logs'. "There was no evidence, not a trace of your DNA on anything. How is that possible?"

"That's another level 10, top secret device that only captain's and their chiefs of security are privy to. Suffice it to say, it is possible." Tuvok nodded in silent agreement.

"Why?" B'Elanna couldn't believe this was happening. "What reason do you have for it?"

"I don't know, Lt. I don't even recall the attacks because, as far as I'm concerned, I was asleep. Think about, all of the attacks occurred when I was suppose to be asleep."

"The internal sensor logs do uphold that theory," Tuvok added with a sad dryness.

"I can't give you a reason. Maybe, somewhere in my subconscious I wanted these people out of the way because they were a distraction or an unwelcome intrusion on my personal life, so my subconscious was only doing what my conscious mind could not. I was slightly aware that Jacobs had a thing for me, and I never liked his girlfriend. Maybe I was trying to protect him from her, but messed things up some how. Maybe I was jealous of Chakotay and Seven, or Seven and Chakotay. Maybe I wanted to put Harry out of his misery because I know he'll never be promoted on this ship. Maybe I've been brainwashed or there's an alien influence at work. I don't know. I don't have an answer expect to say that I am responsible for what has transpired on this ship."

One of Tuvok's people, Ensign Taylor, entered the brig with a hypospray in her hand. "We found this in the Captain's quarters, sir."

Tuvok took it looking to see what it contained. "This does contain the substance used to place the victims in their present state." Tuvok turned to face his Captain. "It would appear, Captain, that you are, indeed, the assailant. I am afraid, that as the only able body to do so at this time, I must revoke your command of this ship. From here until such time as Commander Chakotay is fully recovered, I am the acting captain of this ship. You are hereby confined to the brig until such time as a hearing can be held for your crimes and a suitable reason found for your actions."

Hushed whispers and silent cries could be heard from the crewmembers as what had just happened sank in. Their worst nightmare had come true. Captain Janeway - guardian angel of the ship, mother to all, counselor, confidant, heroine figure, and sometimes sex symbol – was the enemy. It couldn't be real. What would they do? Could they go on knowing their Captain was going to be charged with murder? The end of Voyager was drawing near, and the sadness and silent wails of a mourning crew were the only things that could be heard as the ship hovered in the middle of space waiting for her judgment day to come.

* * *

Epilogue

The Doctor found upon completing several complicated scans of Captain Janeway's brain that, during an away mission, she had contracted a disease that caused her to sleepwalk. However, the reasons for the attacks, he determined, were not so simple. It appeared that the sleepwalking gave her ample ability to, as one of her theories had suggested, act out what her subconscious mind wanted to do. He had cured her of the sleepwalking, but there was nothing he could do for the charge of murder.

During one of the contacts with Starfleet Command, Tuvok defended Janeway to a Starfleet Tribunal after Chakotay took over as acting captain. The Doctor had managed to revive all of the crewmembers. In the end, the Captain was suspended from duty for six weeks and confined to her quarters. However, the charge of murder was dropped.


End file.
